Sounders FC 2 Falls 4-2 In First Road Match Of Season To Swope Park Rangers

Estrada brace not enough as S2 records first loss of 2018; S2 returns to action on Wednesday with home fixture against Fresno FC at Cheney Stadium.

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – Sounders FC 2 (1-0-1, 3 points) battled to a 4-2 road loss at Swope Park Rangers (2-0-0, 6 points) on Friday night at Shawnee Mission South District Stadium. Despite a brace from forward David Estrada, S2 was unable to capitalize on a flurry of second-half chances and dropped its first match of the 2018 campaign. John Hutchinson’s squad returns to action on Wednesday, March 28th for a home fixture against expansion side Fresno FC at Cheney Stadium (7:00 p.m. PT / USL YouTube Channel).

The hosts dominated possession in the early stages of the match, but S2 managed to strike first off a fantastic finish from Estrada in the 19th minute. Center back Rodrigue Ele played a line-breaking pass into the path of Estrada, who lifted the ball over the onrushing goalkeeper and finished into an empty net. Swope Park answered immediately, with forward Khalrton Belmar finding the back of the net just two minutes later. The hosts then took a 2-1 lead when team captain Rodrigue Savaria scored with a lofted header from a corner kick.

Despite a strong start to the second half by in which S2 dominated possession from the opening whistle, it was Swope Park that managed to score the first goal after the interval, as Colton Storm shrugged off a pair of challenges and finished from close range in the 52nd minute. Four minutes later, S2 managed to halve the deficit once again through Estrada. Attacking midfielder Handwalla Bwana skipped past three defenders before playing a no-look through-ball for Estrada, who beat the goalkeeper with a toe-poke finish to the near post.

Swope Park scored a decisive fourth goal in the 62nd minute, with Storm finding Belmar in space down the left-hand side before the forward completed his brace with a curled effort to the back post. S2 carved out a number of chances throughout the remainder of the match but were unable to convert down the stretch past McLeod.

For ticket information on S2’s first season at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma, please contact the We R Tacoma front office at (253) 752-7707 or visit S2Tacoma.com. The most up-to-date news and notes about S2 leading up to the 2018 season can be found by following the club on Twitter (@SoundersFC2) and liking the team on Facebook.